1. Field of the Invention.
The invention in general relates to automatic ice making systems and more particularly to an icemaker having a bail mechanism that is more reliable than the bail mechanisms of prior art icemakers and provides a better feel when manually operated.
2. Description of the Prior Art.
In this patent the term bail means any movable member. This term includes hoops and bars but is not intended to be limited to such structures. U.S. Pat. No. 2,717,497 issued to E. J. Knerr and U.S. Pat. No. 3,299,656 issued to W. J. Linstromberg et al disclose prior art icemakers of the type to which the present invention relates. Each of the icemakers described in these patents includes a bail which during the icemaker cycle is driven by a motor to a position in which the icemaker is de-energized and then allowed to return to a position in which the icemaker is energized provided that the ice storage bin is not full. If the bin is full, then the bail cannot return to the energizing position and the icemaker does not operate until some ice is removed. In each device the bail can also be manually latched up in the de-energized position even if the bin is not full. In each of the icemakers the bail is also biased by a force toward the energizing position. In the Knerr icemaker, the bias force is provided by gravity while in Linstromberg et al the bias force is provided by a torsion spring. In both cases the bias force is essentially constant over the full range of motion of the bail, or at most varying by a small factor related to the change in the gravity vector on the weight in Knerr or following Hooks law for torsion springs in Knerr.